First, can we take a second to appreciate how absolutely gorgeous the cover of Forget Me Not is? I found this in the Libby app under audiobooks and was drawn to it because of the cover. Then, I read the description and knew I needed to listen to it.

Forget Me Not is a middle grade fiction, written in beautiful verses about Calliope June and her struggles with Tourette’s Syndrome and a mother who doesn’t know how to plant roots in one city for very long. Throughout the story Calliope faces many challenges from making new friends, balancing those who want to shame her and the belief that she has to hide her ticks from the world.

The story is told from two points of view; Calliope and her neighbor, Jinsong, who happens to be the student body president and popular at school. Unlike Calliope, Jinsong isn’t afflicted by any disabilities and struggles to balance the line between being popular and being a friend to all.

What I really appreciated about Forget Me Not is the life lesson within the story. If you’ve never been a Calliope you may have been a Jinsong, or vice versa. Middle school is hard and kids are mean, but it’s a time where we start to become our own people and the lessons touched on in this novel are ones we can all relate to.

Ellie Terry, the author, has Tourette’s Syndrome herself and you can tell through her writing that she knows this arena. I’m the mom of a daughter who is diagnosed with Autism, so I will always shout out to the authors who write about characters with disabilities. Representation is everything and this novel represents the Tourette’s community very well.